Crossing Swords
by NinjaSlayer4x
Summary: While Weiss and Jaune's first encounters didn't go so well and may have ended on bad terms, will the heiress rise to the occasion to help a fellow hunter in training in need?
1. Chapter 1

It had been three weeks since his duel with the Ursa in Forever Fall and finally setting things right with his partner, Pyrrha. Three weeks of hell. Nearly every day she had him up just before dawn to practice grappling, and immediately after classes for sparring. Weekends were more of a relief to the young hunter in training, as he spent those working to better understand and utilize his aura in battle. However, the weeks had taken their toll on poor Jaune, and Pyrrha didn't seem to have any intent on letting up in the near future.

This morning in particular, Pyrrha had wanted to test Jaune's skill with his weapon of choice, Crocea Mors. While not the greatest weapon around, it still did the trick… if used properly. The duo stood opposite each other in the training room, several yards of open ground separating the two.

"Pyrrha, do I really have to go through with this, I mean, what if someone get's hurt? What if I get hurt?!" His face gave way to nervousness, and a touch of sleep deprivation.

"Jaune, if you don't learn to master your weapon, then what good are you in battle?" She took her stance and readied Miló and Akoúo. "Besides, it's time we put these past few weeks of training to good use." She wasn't going to let this go easily. He had asked her to help him train and she showed no sign of breaking that promise. "Are you ready, Jaune?"

"Yeah, just give me a second…" Just as Jaune raised his sword and shield, he found himself ducking just in time for Pyrrha's javelin to soar just inches above his head. "Holy crap, I said give me a second!" But his plea was cut short as Pyrrha quickly charged into him full force, sending him back several feet.

"I'm disappointed Jaune, you should've seen that one coming," She retrieved her weapon and stood ready, "Now let's put your training to the test."

_Oh crap, this is gonna hurt. _Thought poor Jaune at the sight of his relentless partner.

Pyrrha quickly closed the gap in between them and quickly blocked a strike from Jaune's shield with her own, simultaneously thrusting her javelin toward the tiring hunter. Jaune suddenly found himself parrying the attack with his own sword, just narrowly avoiding a quick end to his training.

_Oh my god, I actually did that! Maybe I actually have gotten better at this. _Lost in his surprise at his quick reaction, he missed the shield that was fast approaching his exposed face. "Oh sh-", BAM! Everything became blinding and he felt around to try and get his bearings. He knew he had just made a fool of himself, he knew he was down, but where was Pyrrha? _Dammit, way to look like an idiot, Arc. How'd you leave yourself open to that? _As his vision came back to him he saw his partner towering before him, her weapon intent on ending their duel. Angry and injured, he swung his sword out at her in an attempt to disarm her. Instead, he found his sword caught in between Pyrrha's shield and javelin, unable to retaliate.

"Jaune, focus, don't strike so blindly. Controlled and precise attacks are what you need for close range combat." Before she could speak any further, she was shoved back as Jaune tried desperately to free his sword. His shield met her square in the chest and, although armored, knocked the wind out of her.

With his sword free, Jaune swung again, this time missing altogether. He could handle hand-to-hand combat, but with his sword he only felt weighed down and off balance. Other than the Death Stalker from the abandoned temple and the Ursa in Forever Fall, Jaune hadn't really trained on his swordsmanship. His lessons with Pyrrha always consisted of releasing his aura and weaponless sparring.

_You can't even use your own weapon properly, some hunter you'll turn out to be. _His thoughts only served to fuel his self-directed temper.

After only just a few minutes of combat, Pyrrha decided to call it quits. Not for her sake, but because she felt Jaune clearly needed more work with his combat training. She had managed to easily block nearly all of his attacks that hadn't carelessly missed entirely. The young hunter, though, sat on a nearby bench, hiding his face in his lap.

"Jaune, is everything alright?" She asked with a tone of concern in her voice. She stared down at the exhausted and distraught young hunter.

"How can I become a great warrior like you, when I can't even master my own weapon?" He stood up and turned away from his partner. "Weeks of training gone to waste. I've failed you as a student."

"Jaune, look at me." The young man turned to face her. "You're not a failure. Yes, we've trained for weeks, but it may not have been the right criteria for you. Have you ever had professional training with your weapon?" The young hunter pondered this briefly before answering.

"Well, other than brief lessons with my father back at the village, not really." He replied.

A smile formed across Pyrrha's face. "Well, there lies the issue, Jaune. You're amazing in unarmed combat and your aura has gotten stronger. You just need to now turn your focus toward handling your sword effectively in battle. With a little more work, you'll be ready to take on the creatures of Grimm in no time!"

"Well, if you think so. Great… More training. So when will we fit those lessons into the day?" Jaune let out a sigh of both relief and frustration.

"Not 'we', Jaune," Pyrrha explained, "You see, I don't think I'm the best instructor for your weapon of choice." Jaune frowned at this. "Our loadout is far from similar, besides, what you need is discipline and precision. I can only help you with your aura and unarmed fighting skills. The problem will be finding someone suitable for your need."

"So you're telling me, I still need more training on top of what I'm currently doing… and then you have no idea where to begin on that?" He plopped to the ground in disappointment. _This training will be the death of me._

"Well, we can ease up on the sparring in the afternoons. Your weapon training takes precedence over that. As a future hunter, your weapon will be an essential asset in protecting the innocent. It must not be a tool, but an extension of yourself, of your will and strength." She held her hand out toward Jaune and helped him to his feet. "Now, we just need to work on finding a teacher." She said with a smile.

"Alright, Pyrrha," he replied as he straightened himself up, "If it'll help me to reach my full potential and to become the hero I'm expected to be, then I'm ready."

"Glad to hear it, Jaune. Now, we best be getting to the cafeteria before they stop serving breakfast." She turned to head out the door.

"You go ahead, I'll meet you just before Professor Port's class. I'm gonna head back to the room and shower real quick." He started for the exit, but paused just before the door. "Oh, and Pyrrha…"

"Yes, Jaune?"

"Thank you. Thank you for everything. You've been a lot of help and I really appreciate what you've done for me." He gave her a quick hug and hurriedly left for their room.

* * *

Pyrrha was met with a chime of greetings from her friends as she approached the table that the rest of her team, as well as team RWBY were sitting at.

"Morning, Pyrrha, how was training with Jaune today?" Asked Ruby as she quickly ate from her pile of chocolate chip pancakes.

"Yeah, how was it, did Vomit Boy lose his lunch again?" Butted in Yang. "Speaking of which, where is your little boy-toy anyway?"

Frustrated at Yang's comment, Pyrrha chose to ignore it.

"Good morning Ruby, our training session went well today." She pondered telling her friends about Jaune's trouble before continuing. "I'm concerned about his skills with Crocea Mors. He knows how to handle himself in hand-to-hand combat, but I feel he lacks proper etiquette when handling his sword." She looked at each of her companions, judging their reactions. Yang was the first to respond.

"Well, if 'proper etiquette' and fancy-sword handling is what Vomit Boy needs, then our own local Ice Queen herself is who you need." All heads turned toward the young heiress, who was sitting at the far end of the table.

"Why is everyone looking at me like that?" Asked Weiss as she looked up from her meal.

"What do you say Weiss, will you help Jaune master his skills with a sword?" Implored Pyrrha.

Weiss was rather taken aback by the odd request. How could she even bear to help that fool, Jaune Arc? That awkward oaf had done nothing but hit on her since their first encounter, albeit, he had improved since then.

"Never, not ever in a thousand years would I help that blubbering imbecile!" Hissed Weiss. This drew questioning stares from her teammates.

"Weis, you've had years of proper training and are the most skilled with a sword of all of us. Jaune needs someone to teach him proper swordsmanship and how to keep his wits about him in combat. Please, do it for a friend." Begged Pyrrha. Everyone stared intently at Weiss, eager for her response. She could feel their curious glares searing through her.

"Very well then, I'll do it." She finally answered.

Pyrrha breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Weiss." Pyrrha replied.

"But if he so much as looks at me funny or even thinks about trying to flirt with me, I can assure you of his swift and well-deserved early demise! Are we clear?" Exclaimed Weiss.

"As you wish, Weiss. We'll discuss this further after class today." Replied a thankful Pyrrha.

Just as the conversation came to an end, poor Jaune Arc made his arrival to the cafeteria.

"Hey, guys. What'd I miss?" He asked with an eager smile.

Pyrrha stood up from her seat to address Jaune. A smile spread out across her face.

"Jaune, meet your new instructor. Miss Schnee." She gestured toward Weiss.

Jaune's smile quickly faded, replaced by a petrified expression.

"Oh god why…"


	2. Chapter 2

"You've got to be kidding, Pyrrha!" Jaune exclaimed as they walked from their final class of the day. "Weiss. Weiss Schnee. The totalitarian ice witch of Beacon?!"

"It is no joke, Jaune," replied Pyrrha, "Weiss has the most experience and training on the matter at hand." She looked toward Jaune and seeing that he was still not entirely onboard with the idea, she added, "Besides, it will give you an opportunity to get to know her better. Perhaps you just got off on the wrong foot."

"I don't know Pyrrha… I still don't think it's the best idea. I mean, she already hates me as is." He breathed a sigh of discontent as they reached the door to their dorm.

Just as Jaune reached for the doorknob, Pyrrha spun him around, gripping him by his shoulders. "Jaune," She began as she looked into his eyes intently, "Do you want to be a hunter, a hero that stands up in the face of danger to protect the innocent from harm?"

"Of course. More than anything." He answered truthfully. He knew he wasn't going to like where this was going.

"Then you're just going to have to accept the training arrangements as they stand. You and I both know you need the help. I've seen you accomplish great things in the short time here at Beacon. Handling an ill-tempered young heiress should be no obstacle for you." A slight smile formed across her lip, "I believe in you, Jaune."

Jaune pondered this for a moment before responding, "You know what, Pyrrha? You're right. I've just got to stay confident and never give up." A newfound confidence built up deep inside the young hunter in training. "I'll show that Weiss that I'm no coward. Jaune Arc will not be made a fool of! Besides, at least I've got the weekend to relax and gather my wits."

As Jaune turned toward the door, he reached for the handle. Instead of the usual metal doorknob, his hand met something soft, replaced by an almost silk touch. He had grabbed a small, delicate hand. Standing there before him was the ice queen herself.

_Oh crap. Why does this keeping happening to–_

"Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?!" A look of rage burned across the young heiress' face as she tore her arm away from him. "Do not touch me. Do not stare at me. Let's get this straight, if you want me to help you, you'll do as I say and I'll have none of your obnoxious behavior. Do you understand?!" Her authoritative stare left Jaune off guard, feeling much of his newfound confidence being seared away by the young huntress' demands.

'U-uh…" He stammered, searching for some sense of courage. "Yes ma'am."

"Good," exclaimed Weiss, "Eight o'clock, tomorrow morning in the training room. You want to develop any sort of skill? Then be there." With that, she left the two partners to fathom what just happened.

"Pyrrha… What just happened?" Questioned Jaune, still trying to gather himself.

"Looks like Ms. Schnee is eager to begin your training," She patted Jaune on the back as they entered their room, "Don't worry, I'm sure she'll warm up to you. You'll do fine."

Jaune plopped down on his bed, already overwhelmed by what was to come. "I hope so, Pyrrha," He sighed deeply, "I hope so."

_This rich girl will be the death of me. _He thought to himself. _I just know it._

"You'd best be getting to bed early, Jaune. You're going to need your strength tomorrow." Pyrrha interrupted his thoughts.

"I know…" Jaune already felt himself drifting lazily into unconscious slumber. _I just hope I don't screw things up too bad tomorrow._

_That idiot had better not try anything tomorrow. _Weiss thought to herself as she entered her own room. She was surprised to see that Ruby was the only one already back other than herself. She saw that she was busy tending to Crescent Rose at the edge of her bed.

The young team leader looked up from what she was doing to address her partner. "Hey there, Weiss. Where ya' been?" Usually, the heiress was back by now, eager to begin her assignments. It was unlike her to deviate from her strict schedule.

"Just paying your little friend Jaune a visit," She replied as she settled onto her bed to begin her studies. "I wanted to make sure he understands the consequences of crossing me."

Ruby's typically permanent smile faded, giving way to a frown of disapproval. She stood up and approached Weiss. "You know, you shouldn't be so hard on him."

At this, Weiss turned toward Ruby with a raised eyebrow. "And just what do you know? That idiot has done nothing but be a hindrance to everyone and make a fool of himself at every given opportunity."

"I know that he tries his hardest to be just as good as the next student here at Beacon. I know that he's got more heart and determination in him than anybody," Ruby glared at her partner, "Believe it or not, Jaune has worked his butt off these last few weeks so that he can better himself. He just needs the opportunity to rise to the occasion."

"Ruby, why can't you see him for what he is? A womanizing dim-witted teenage boy, with no place here at this prestigious academy," Weiss retorted in disagreement, "Everybody sees it."

Ruby stared intently into the young heiress' eyes. "Everybody, or you?" With that, she gathered Crescent Rose and left her partner to consider her words.

Weiss sat alone in the silence for a while, deep in thought over her team leader's input. She was frustrated that she had agreed to help train Jaune, but she kept finding herself returning to the scolding by her partner. Unable to focus properly on the assignments laid out before her, she decided to retire to bed early. As she lay in bed that night, she found herself unable to sleep. Instead, her thoughts continued to drift toward what Ruby had said to her.

_You need to get your rest, Weiss. _She thought to herself. _Why are her words concerning you so much? It's not like there was any reality to them. _Her thoughts turned toward her hardly eager pupil, Jaune. _He's just an idiot who doesn't belong here. He'll rue the day he tried to make a move on Weiss Schnee. I see right through his feigned 'skills', he'll never become a hunter. How can Ruby see him differently? He's nothing more than an obstacle in your way, Weiss. They may think he's so much better, so determined to better himself, but I see right through him._

The white-haired huntress finally found herself drifting into slumber as her mental debate drew to an end.

_Everybody sees it._

_Everybody…_

_Right?_

_Nope. _The very thought of doubt was quickly struck down.

_The Arc boy will suffer tomorrow…_

* * *

**Hey, everybody. I'll be posting a new chapter every Sunday. I promise they'll be much longer though. Thanks for the good feedback. Also, check out my good friend and helpful editor, CushionySiren3's RWBY story A Frozen Heart. Thanks.**


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own RWBY. RWBY is the creation of Monty Oum.**

Jaune woke with a start to the screech of his alarm clock, rolling onto his side before quickly swatting the noisemaker with his fist. As he rose into a sitting position on the edge of his bed, he turned to see the disgruntled faces of his teammates staring at him through sleepy eyes from their corresponding beds.

"I'm sorry, guys… I'm just not used to getting up this early on the weekend," He stated apologetically, though seeing his apology was getting him nowhere, "Please, just go back to sleep, I'll get out of here as soon as possible. Again, sorry."

With that, his friends simultaneously issued a final groan of weary disapproval before returning to their previous slumber. Jaune carefully did his best to maneuver about his room, throwing on his usual attire and armor and gathering his sword and shield. Before leaving his room he glanced at the time, 7:50AM. He lazily exited his room and made his way to the training room. As he walked, his thoughts wandered to the events of the day before.

_Way to go Jaune, you can't even handle your own sword properly. _He mentally cursed himself. _You're definitely gonna go far as a hunter. You'd be nothing without all the help from Pyrrha and… yek… the incarnate of hell frozen over._

As he walked, he noticed the amount of students up and about Beacon, or better, the lack of students. He was up early on a weekend, about to be in a room full of sharp objects with the girl who hated him most. So far, he was not having a good time.

_I just hope she goes easy on me. _Jaune paused before finally reaching the training room._ I just hope she goes easy on me. _He paused to contemplate the thought before opening the door. _What am I thinking? I'm screwed._

* * *

As sunlight flooded the room of team RWBY, its warmth slowly draped itself over the young huntress, causing her to stir in her sleep. She slowly came into consciousness at the sensation of the day, as well as something else. She became aware of the feeling of warm breathing on her brow. Her eyes shot open and she was met with the sight of a very close-ranged Ruby Rose, her face just inches above her own.

"Hi ya' Weiss," The young team leader eagerly announced with a smile, "Sleep well?"

Not too enthusiastic about her rather odd wake up call, Weiss slowly sat up from her bed. "Just what do you think you are doing, hovering over me like that?" Then a look of disgust crept over her face. "Were… Were you watching me sleep?"

Ruby's smile quickly faded. "What? No! I– I was just waiting to see if you'd wake up on time! If you didn't get up, I was gonna tell you so you wouldn't be late. Geez." She crept back to the other side of the room and sat down on Blake's bed.

Taking a few seconds to process the information, Weiss wondered why she was up so early on a Saturday. Then it hit her. She had agreed to teach Jaune to handle his sword properly this morning. The same annoying, puke-filled idiot that had tried to flirt with her from the beginning. She began to question why she'd even agreed to help the lunkhead, when it hit her.

_If he wants my help, then he's going to have to suffer for it._

"Umm, Weiss?" Asked Ruby, "Everything okay? You're just sitting there with an evil look on your face. You're starting to scare me." Ruby began to step back further away. "Look, I'm really sorry about creeping you out earlier, I just wanted to help, I'll never–"

"I'm not going to hurt you, Ruby," Weiss interjected, "But I can't say the same for someone else." As she answered, she began gathering her things in preparation for training.

"Weiss!" Ruby stopped her before she could leave the room. "You can't just kill Jaune! He's my friend and he needs you to help him… and as a huntress in training you're supposed to help others in need!"

"Hmph." Weiss retorted. "Very well then, I'll train him. But it's going to be grueling, and he'd better be ready to train hard."

"Thanks, Weiss." Ruby replied. "Just try not to cripple him at the end of every session, will ya'?" She added as Weiss left the room.

Weiss turned back toward her team leader briefly. "Hey, what happens, happens."

* * *

By the time Weiss arrived at the training room it was already 7:45AM. She briefly scanned the area for Jaune, but could not locate him.

_Hmph, some pupil he turned out to be. Not even early for his first lesson. _She thought to herself in frustration. _He probably won't even bother to show up. Lazy idiot. _But as the last thought crossed her mind, the opening of the training room door caught her attention. In walked the womanizing flirt of Beacon.

"Um… Hey, Weiss." He nervously greeted her. "How's it go–"

"You're late." She interrupted, raising a hand to stop him mid sentence.

"But…" He began in protest, "But it's only eight o'clock!"

"Precisely. A good student should be early to all lessons." Weiss quickly glared at him. "I almost forgot for a second who I was dealing with. Now, let's get started."

"Fine…" Jaune replied, deploying his shield and readying his sword in preparation. Every fiber of his being yearned for him to defend himself against her acidic remarks, but he quickly thought back to his conversation with Pyrrha.

_Just go along with it, Jaune. _He mentally told himself. _Just do what she says and get it over with. You know you need the help, even if it means dealing with her attitude. _He arranged himself into a fighting stance, ready for whatever training awaited him.

"And just what do you think you're doing?" Weiss stated, interrupting his focus.

"Uh, getting ready to train?" He answered in a confused tone.

"No," She interjected, "You're not ready for that yet." Her voice took on a knowledgeable, yet still narcissistic tone. "I've seen your fighting style… if you can call it a style. You'll have to start from the basics." She gestured toward his shield. "And put that barbaric contraption away, you won't be needing it for a while." With that, he collapsed his shield and set it aside.

"So what am I gonna learn today?" Jaune asked with newfound eagerness. "Slashing? Stabbing? Or maybe countering!" With each remark, he energetically mimicked the motion.

"No. You're going to learn to take a proper stance." She replied. Upon seeing he was still making swinging motions with his sword, she added, "And quit goofing around!"

Jaune quickly stopped and turned to face the clearly frustrated huntress.

"Sheesh, sorry… continue." He replied, this time with his full-undivided attention.

"Very well…" She continued. "Now, stand with your feet shoulder length apart."

He gave her a questioning look before mimicking her. "Okay, now what?" He asked.

"Next, stand with your leading foot slightly forward." She stated.

"Uhh… Leading foot?" He asked. A puzzled expression crossed his face.

"Yes, leading foot." She stood staring at him, waiting for him to act. Seeing he still had no idea what he was doing, she added, "The same side as your dominant hand. You hold your sword with your right hand, so right foot. Hopeless, I swear." She mumbled the last part under her breath in annoyance.

"Like this?" Asked Jaune, as he attempted to do as Weiss instructed.

"Yes," She replied, "And for Dust's sake, don't stand so stiff." She gestured toward Jaune's awkward stance. He stood tall and lanky.

"What's wrong with the way I stand?" He asked in confusion. He had done as she said, and now she was critiquing him.

"You need to put a bend in your knees and stand more on the balls of your feet," She answered in continued frustration, "Stand relaxed, not so… so–"

"So what?" He asked.

"So… So Jaune!" She exclaimed, gesturing to all of him.

"That doesn't even make any sense…" He replied, all while staring at Weiss with a puzzled look.

"Look, do you want to learn how to handle your sword or not?" She answered.

"Yes… so what now then?" He replied in a frustrated tone. He was just going to have to learn to tolerate this.

"You may think this is stupid, Jaune, but it's not." She answered. "Having a proper stance when fighting is key. By staying relaxed and springy in this stance, you better your ability to react quickly and to keep yourself balanced in a battle. Now we'll just practice moving around like this." She stared at Jaune for a moment, judging his reaction.

"I understand, Weiss," He replied at last with a sigh of discontent. Day one, and he still hasn't even used his sword and shield once. This was going to be even more boring than one of Professor Port's rants about the glory days.

The next hour or so was spent practicing moving effectively around using his stance. However, after just moving back and forth for so long, Jaune began to tire and become more irate toward his new instructor's teaching methods.

He let out a groan of frustration. "Weiss, how much more of this? I mean, I'm pretty sure I can successfully move left and right, forward and backward. This is really boring."

"Boring?" Weiss stated with a malicious grin. "You know what, you're right. I think we can move on to the next step." With that she took out Myrtenaster and directed it toward Jaune.

"Umm, Weiss, what are you doing?" He asked with growing concern.

"You said this was boring. Now, we can simulate the effects of battle. Let's see you use your stance now." She answered. She was really going to enjoy this. With that, she fired waves of ice toward the poor hunter in training.

"I take it back, I want to go back to the boring stuff!" Jaune shouted in fear as he narrowly dodged becoming a frozen Jaunesicle. But his pleas went unheard as Weiss continued to open fire.

"Quit whining!" She exclaimed as she fired. "It's for your own good!"

With each blast of Weiss' weapon of choice, Jaune was forced to quickly dodge. As he did so, he realized just how easy it was to stay mobile.

"Weiss, it works!" He exclaimed with a smile on his face as he dodged yet another blast. "Look out creatures of Grimm, here comes Jaune Arc!"

"Shut it, Arc. Keep your focus." Weiss replied as she continued to blast ice toward Jaune.

Keeping relaxed and loose, he was able to easily dodge each blast with effective fluidity.

_It really works. Just imagine what I could do with this is combat. _He thought to himself.

"Hey, Weiss," He started as he continued to dodge, "It's like you're not even trying. Come on, hit me with your best shot!" He let out a prideful laugh.

_So, you want to get cocky then? I'll show you. _Thought Weiss with a growing temper.

With that, Weiss carefully took aim and hit Jaune square in the chest, freezing him from the chest down. He fell to the ground with a loud thud and a groan of pain. She slowly approached the now frozen Jaune and aimed Myrtenaster at him.

"You had it," She started, "But then you just had to go and blow it with your stupid pride. You're never going to be a skilled hunter until you learn to control yourself. Our lesson is over for the day." Then Weiss turned to leave the training room.

"Wait, you can't just leave me like this!" He shouted in frozen terror as she walked away.

Weiss turned back briefly to address the iced hunter. "Think of it as revenge for everything in the past. Besides, you need to take time to work on your foolish behavior. I recommend you learn some discipline before our next lesson." With that, she left the training room, also leaving Jaune to thaw out at his own pace.

* * *

"And then she froze me and just left me there, Pyrrha!" Jaune exclaimed to his partner as they sat in their room.

"Sounds to me like you sort of had it coming to you." Pyrrha answered truthfully. "You did kind of taunt her and question her methods."

"Oh come on, Pyrrha, don't take her side on this!" Jaune stated in disappointment. "Besides, all she did was teach me how to stand. I mean, what kind of training is that!?"

"This is exactly the kind of disrespectful behavior that probably got you frozen alive." She replied. "Besides, she knows what she's doing, Jaune. You just need to go along with it and respect her teachings.

"I don't mean to be disrespectful Pyrrha," He replied, "It's just that she's so ruthless… I don't even think there's an ounce of politeness in her." He fell back onto his bed with an exhausted thud.

"Jaune, it's just her personality." She answered. Then she added quietly to herself, "…but the constant flirting and nicknames probably didn't help either."

"What was that, Pyrrha?" He gave her a questioning look from where he lay on his bed.

"Oh nothing… Besides, if she truly hated you, would she even be helping you in the first place?" Pyrrha stared at the exhausted hunter, waiting for him to speak.

Seeing no flaw in her logic, Jaune replied. "I guess not, Pyrrha. I mean, it was pretty cool dodging all those frozen blast… you know… up until the point where I got frozen."

Pyrrha let out a laugh, trying to picture her poor partner trapped in a block of ice in the training room for several hours.

"It's not funny!" He exclaimed in disagreement.

"It kind of is…" She replied.

* * *

"So how was training with Jaune, Weiss?" Ruby asked as she eagerly jumped up from her bed. "You didn't kill him did you?" She replied, her stare becoming one of caution suddenly.

"No, your little Jauney isn't dead. Just a little hypothermic." She replied with a mischievous grin.

"Weiss, how could you!" Ruby exclaimed in shock.

"Hey, he had it coming to him," She answered, "He was the one who decided to get all cocky about his training. Had to teach him a little lesson about not crossing Weiss Schnee."

"He needed your help, and you froze him the first day?!" Ruby replied.

"Relax, I'm sure he's thawed out by now…" Weiss took a second to think to herself. _Although, he really does deserve worse for his constant nagging and stupidity._

"Weiss, he doesn't mean any harm by the way he acts. It's just who he is and he can't help that!" Ruby exclaimed with growing frustration.

"Well, that's why I'll help do it for him." Weiss replied. "Serves him right." At this, Weiss began to put her stuff away and prepare to begin her weekend assignments.

"You're so self-centered, Weiss. Not everyone has to be as perfect as you!" With that, Ruby headed for the door, adding on the way out, "I'm going to go speak with Jaune and make sure he's okay."

The door to team RWBY's room slammed shut with a loud bang as the young team leader stormed off, both in frustration toward her teammate, and concern for her friend. Weiss stood alone in the middle of the room, staring at the closed door with a look of growing irritation for both her partner, and her new pupil.

"Self-centered," Weiss spoke to herself in the quiet room, "Me?"


	4. Chapter 4

Jaune lay on his back on his bed after sparring with Pyrrha, his mind engrossed with his recent training with the Ice Witch. While unethical, Weiss' teachings really had helped him improve a lot, which showed with his duel with Pyrrha, though much more work was still needed. Thankfully, Weiss had given him Sunday off from training with her, which only meant that he'd have to be ready again after classes tomorrow. The sun's glow still burned from below the horizon, not quite giving in to the shroud of night, yet faltering. Ren and Nora were already gone for dinner, with Pyrrha taking off to meet them just moments ago. Jaune had told her he was too tired to eat and that he'd rather just go to bed early rather than face the horde of students that swarmed the cafeteria at this hour.

_You know, I did do a lot better sparring with Pyrrha, even if my attacks were still crap. _He thought to himself with a sigh of accomplished exhaustion. He hated to admit it, but Weiss definitely deserved all the credit for his recent improvement. His practice with Pyrrha has gone a lot better than expected.

_As much as I hate to accept it, _He thought to himself, _I would be nowhere without her and Pyrrha. And training with Weiss isn't nearly as bad as being thrown into relentless combat with Pyrrha._

Just then, his thoughts darted back to his lengthy imprisonment in a block of ice. _Okay, maybe she's a little tough. Just have to remember not to piss her off. _

He sat up and scooted toward the edge of his bed.

"I should probably take a shower while I still can before Nora comes back and demolishes the bathroom." He thought aloud to himself.

He stood and quickly began to disrobe, his armor already set aside a while ago. His muscles ached from sparring and training most of the day with Pyrrha, and his head ached from all the homework he had had to fit in between sessions. After lumbering into the bathroom and turning the handle, he stood for a moment to allow the temperature to adjust. He thought himself lucky to have the room all to himself in his time of relaxation. No Pyrrha to pester him about training, no Nora to bounce off the walls every given moment, and while Ren was hardly what one would call a hindrance, Jaune was still glad to be alone. As he stepped into the shower, he felt the warm water cascade over him, warming him to his core.

_I sure wish I had this when I was left frozen yesterday._ He thought to himself as he let the warm water relax him. _I really do appreciate her help, but that girl has really got to get a major attitude adjustment._

He dried off after finishing his shower, wrapping himself in a towel before exiting the warm sanctuary of the bathroom. As he entered the shared bedroom he felt the chill of the cold air hit his flesh. Suddenly, just as he made his way across the room, the door flung upon.

"And just what in the heck do you think you–" The intruder managed to say before blindly crashing into the surprised hunter.

The two fell to the ground with a thud, leaving both parties involved in a confused and shocked state.

"Ow… what the heck? Watch where you're going will ya?" Jaune said in a disgruntled tone, suddenly catching sight of his clumsy assailant. He had been decked by Weiss.

"How about you watch where you're going, Arc!" Exclaimed the young huntress.

"Me? You're the one who should knock first!" He replied. All previous thoughts left him, his attention now turned toward the white haired huntress.

"Knock?!" Questioned Weiss with her usual attitude. She subconsciously glanced down, noticing Jaune's attire, or lack of. She quickly threw herself off of him, jumping to her feet in an instant.

"What the hell, perverted freak!" She shouted objectively, accusing him of being responsible.

"Hey, you're the one who barged in here without knocking!" He contested, still in a state of disarray. "Besides, it is my room you know."

"Well… er… Shut up, lunkhead!" Weiss retorted, now realizing it was no one's fault but her own for their awkward encounter. Her mind came back to what had just happened mere seconds ago, causing her to unconsciously blush.

Jaune may have been what one would call "oblivious", but he still noticed this odd reaction by his white haired counterpart. But, still being hindered by his obliviousness, he still couldn't be sure of what it meant.

_Is she blushing… because of me? _He thought to himself.

_Couldn't be… Uh oh, what if she's red with anger. Oh crap Arc, you've really done it now._

"–Did you hear me, Arc?!" Weiss shouted, bringing Jaune back to reality.

"Uh… what was it again?" He asked, still aware of his compromising condition.

"You're useless, I swear. I said, 'meet me tomorrow after Professor Oobleck's class in the training room, and this time bring your sword, you'll be needing it.'" She answered, quoting herself in a more disgruntled tone than before.

"Oh… um got it, Weiss." He replied.

"Good." She stated, before turning to leave. The blush on her cheeks still evident, still embarrassed that she had barged in on Jaune in this state. But she was never going to let him know that.

Then Jaune's big mouth decided to go and ruin what dignity he still had left intact.

"Hey, Snow Angel," He started, his attempt at being smooth near faltering. "No need to blush for all this." He gestured to himself, causing Weiss to stop in her tracks.

Her face suddenly went from one of mixed embarrassment and frustration, to one of pure rage. Jaune quickly took note of this, his ambition and attempt at being smooth to ease the tension suddenly faltering.

"Oh Dust, what have I done…" He said aloud to himself before quickly slamming the door shut. He leaned back against the door in an attempt to barricade himself from the impending onslaught of a pissed off Schnee. He could hear the sound of Weiss loading Myrtenaster and then suddenly things became quiet.

Jaune seized this opportunity to quickly slide one of the shared desks in his room in an attempt to strengthen his makeshift barricade. As he did so a red shard penetrated his barricade, mere inches away from his leg. The shard stuck in place, halfway through both sides.

"Look Weiss, I'm sorry–" He attempted to plead through the door before being cut off by another shard stabbing just to the left of his torso.

"Sorry, you're sorry?!" He heard Weiss shout in reply. Another shard passed through the door.

Just then he heard Weiss load another type of dust into her weapon.

_This can't be good at all. Look at the mess you've caused now. _He thought to himself in a panic as he backed away from his quickly diminishing barricade.

Suddenly, the door and all of it's makeshift wall burst into the room the force of Weiss' attack. This sent Jaune flying back with the concussion, leaving him lying disheveled on the ground. Weiss stood in the now open doorway, looking at Jaune intently with her weapon trained on him. Her stare was intent on finishing him off. And Jaune would have been done for, had it not been for a passing Ozpin.

"And just what is going on here, you two?" He asked in his usually blank expression. He peered into the room briefly to see a near wiped out Jaune lying in just a towel and covered in debris. His gaze changed to one of question as he turned his attention to the infuriated young heiress.

"Ms. Schnee," He started as he took a sip of his coffee, "What interesting events unfolded here?"

"Nothing, Headmaster. Just a bit of training that got out of hand is all, right Jaune?" Weiss's stare quickly turned to one of innocence, an emotion ill-hid by her usual demeanor.

Ozpin's gaze returned to Jaune, especially taking note of his lack of clothing.

"Is this correct, Mr. Arc?" He asked. "Was this indeed a training mishap?"

Before Jaune answered, he remembered the consequences of crossing Weiss.

"Um, yeah… a training accident." He answered, his tone hinting at his dishonesty.

Ozpin took one last look toward both obviously quarreling students before speaking.

"Very well then," He spoke before taking yet another sip of his seemingly endless supply of coffee. "Do try to be more careful though. Mr. Arc, see to it that this mess is sorted out by the end of the day. Can't have a proper bedroom without a door."

"Uh… Yes sir." Jaune replied as he carefully stood up amongst the damage.''

"Ms. Schnee, you best be getting to your own room now. Don't you agree?" Said Ozpin. With his cane in his other hand, he gestured Weiss away.

"Oh and Mr. Arc," He started, "Do tread carefully."

"Will do, Sir." Replied Jaune as he watched his headmaster disappear out of sight.

His attention then turned to the jumbled mess that was his room. He knew it would take him hours to sort everything out again. He also knew he should've been more careful with his choice of words earlier. With that, he turned to get dressed in the bathroom, as it now provided his only sanctity from the outside.

As Ozpin wandered down the halls of Beacon, his thoughts came back to what he had just witnessed.

_Those two are very interesting… Very interesting indeed._

**Hey, guys! Thanks for all the support and reviews. Sorry if this isn't my best chapter so far, I've been sick with pneumonia and that definitely didn't help at all. Next Sunday, however, I will be out of state so I will probably post Monday morning at the latest. ****Write on, read on, or go do whatever it is you generally do.**


	5. Chapter 5

As Jaune sat in Professor Port's class the next day, he found himself unable to stay focused. In addition to the mind-numbing reminiscence of Port's glory days, Jaune still had his training with Weiss later that day on his mind. The previous afternoon's 'training accident' probably meant that he was in for it today. While he had been able to get the door replaced in just a few hours, it wasn't the potential wrath of Ozpin that instilled pure terror in the young hunter. He knew he couldn't just back out of training, but he also knew he couldn't just let himself be mercilessly executed in yet another coincidental 'training accident'. No, he needed assurance. He needed somebody to watch over him and to keep Weiss in her place. But who would it be? Pyrrha would most certainly protect him from harm… but then she would only lecture him about respecting Weiss' teaching and how he needed the help. Ren probably wouldn't want to be stuck in the training room for several hours just to sit and watch. And then there was Nora…

"_WE'LL BREAK HIS LEGS!"_

…Maybe his teammates weren't the best choice for this.

Jaune turned his attention to Team RWBY. Weiss sat intently taking notes, even though this was just another one of Professor Port's greatly exaggerated war stories.

_Definitely can't choose her to watch over me and protect me from herself. _He thought to himself.

He noticed Blake sitting in her seat, her attention entirely focused on yet another one of her novels she seemed to have an endless supply of.

_Can't have someone who will be distracted every moment._

Yang sat doodling on her notebook, completely tuning out the lecture.

_Hmm… She's strong and tough._

His thoughts quickly backpedalled to the time she had nearly sucker-punched him into oblivion for touching her hair.

_On second thought, never mind._

Then he noticed Ruby slouched over in her seat, fast asleep, using her folded arms as a makeshift pillow.

_Ruby has always been kind to me and she does give good advice… even if it is just to tell me "nope". Besides, she seems to have just as much of an annoyance toward Weiss as I do._

With that, Jaune determined that Ruby would be the best choice to watch over his next training session to see that it ran smoothly. He just hoped that she'd agree to do it. With just one more class afterward until he had to face Weiss again, he had to act now. He tore out a piece of paper from his notebook and jotted down his request for the young scythe-wilder. Once he was sure the gist of the information was written, he passed the note down the line of students to make its way to Ruby. As the note travelled, the student quietly passed on its destination of "To Ruby" to the next. Unfortunately for Jaune, one student took it upon himself to see to it that the letter was delivered express. When Professor Port had his back turned to his direction, the young hunter in training threw the urgent message toward the young huntress, hitting her directly in the face and landing in her lap. She woke with a start, letting out a loud gasp upon impact.

_Dammit, kid! _Jaune mentally kicked himself for trusting other teens to deliver a message for him.

Luckily for Ruby, Professor Port was too engrossed in his rambling to pay much attention to her rude awakening. She looked around for her attacker, but to no avail. Her attention then turned to the piece of folded paper that now sat in her lap. Upon seeing it was from Jaune, her gaze then turned to him briefly before beginning her reply.

_Good work, Jaune. We're off to a splendid start already. _He thought sarcastically to himself.

Eventually, Ruby's reply reached his hand and he quietly read it to himself.

'_Ouch! What was that for? I was trying to sleep, you know… Sure, I'll help you. But it's gonna cost you.'_

After several more notes being passed between them debating the 'cost' of her help, it was agreed upon that Jaune would have to make Ruby a fresh batch of cookies everyday for the next week. Albeit, it was a rather stiff price to just sit in on one training lesson, it was still Weiss Schnee they were dealing with. Jaune quickly scribbled one last note to Ruby about speaking about the matter after class, this time making it successfully without becoming a ballistic missile. As class let out, Jaune caught up with Ruby to discuss it further.

"Don't worry, Jaune. Us team leaders need to stick together, right?" She said with her usual enthusiastic tone.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Well, like I said, you're just there to make sure I don't get left frozen again or beaten to a pulp." Replied Jaune.

"But what's she gonna think when I'm just sitting there like a creep watching you two the whole time?" Asked Ruby.

"Oh... umm…" Started Jaune. He hadn't really thought about that up until now.

"Well, you could just say you wanted to see if the lessons were really helping me at all."

Ruby pondered this for a brief moment before replying.

"Okie dokie!" She replied as they walked.

"Great, well that takes care of that." Said Jaune.

"Except…" Started Ruby.

Jaune stopped mid step to turn to Ruby.

"Except what?" He asked.

"Except, class is far and you should give me a piggyback ride!" She exclaimed.

"For what?!" He questioned.

"For hitting me in the head and waking me up. I was enjoying that dream, you know!" She replied with a smile.

"Ugh… fine. Climb aboard, Miss Rose." He replied as he leaned so she could get on.

"Yay!" Shouted Ruby eagerly. "Let's go that way!" She leaned and pointed down a hallway.

"Ruby, class is the other way." Replied Jaune as his passenger leaned and tried to direct him.

"Oh yeah…" Replied a disappointed Ruby.

* * *

As Weiss sat in Professor Oobleck's class preparing herself for the lesson to begin, she couldn't help but take notice of the rather unusual entrance of two others. As her attention turned toward the doorway, she saw Jaune enter with Ruby securely attached to his back. The two were laughing and clearly discussing something interesting, however this was definitely unusual behavior for the both of them.

"Aww, look at those two lovebirds." Yang stated, interrupting Weiss' train of thought.

"Lovebirds?" Piped in Nora. "Oh my gosh, they'd be so adorable together! What would we call them now? Juby! Wait, that's stupid. Oh wait, Rosearc… No, Arcrose!"

"Calm down, Nora. Yang's just joking." Said Ren.

"Aww… Fine." She answered disappointedly.

"Hey Weiss, Blake, watch this." Yang said, calling their attention.

Weiss was briefly pondering the possibility of the two actually going out. They were the most socially awkward teens she knew. And they both were team leaders, although Weiss still questioned Ozpin's methods on that. But now her attention was turned to what Yang had planned.

"Hey you lovers! Get a room!" Yang shouted loud enough for the whole class to hear.

All eyes turned toward the innocent pair, as to did their laughter. Ruby immediately hopped off of Jaune's back, a blush quickly spreading across her face.

"No, no, it's not like that guys! We were just–" Jaune tried to quell the laughter of the crowd before being pushed on by Ruby.

As Jaune sat down near Ren, Ruby sat down next to her sister. Weiss looked toward her team leader, still blushing and now frantic in debate with Yang.

"Yang, what the heck!? You know I–" Was all Weiss could catch of their heated discussion over the chatter of the classroom.

Her attention then turned to her clumsy pupil. Jaune seemed to have already gotten over the embarrassment, probably due to his experience in making a fool of himself quite often. While she didn't doubt that the two might have some sort of connection, she highly doubted that Jaune would be the type to take action on it.

After class, Weiss caught up with Yang. She still had time before she had to train with Jaune. Thankfully, the blonde brawler was alone.

"Yang, can I speak to you for a moment?" Weiss began.

"Sure Weiss, what's buggin' ya? Replied Yang.

"Well, it's about Jaune and Ruby." She started.

"Oh, really now?" Answered a now curious Yang. "And just what about them?"

"Well, their little dramatic entrance got me thinking. Is there something going on between them?" Asked Weiss.

"And just why do you want to know?" Pressed Yang.

"No reason, just that it seemed rather odd that they'd do that. And Ruby has been defending him a lot lately. Aren't you at all concerned that she might be dating that blubbering imbecile? After all, you are Ruby's older sister." Stated Weiss.

"Not really, she's a big girl now so she can handle her own affairs. Besides, I don't think Vomit Boy's her type. But I still like to mess with her every chance I get. Hey, and just when are you concerned for Ruby? You two didn't exactly hit it off and develop into the strong partnership like you were expected to." Yang gave a questioning stare at the young heiress.

"Again, no reason. Just curious is all." Weiss replied, now a little uneasy from Yang's glare.

Just then, Yang had yet another mischievous thought.

"Alright then… So how's training with Jaune been?" Asked Yang as she did her best to hide her true intentions.

"Uh, okay I guess." Weiss started to answer.

"Just okay, hasn't he been improving at all? Or have you failed him as a mentor?" Questioned Yang. She knew this would definitely get the young huntress going.

"Just you hold on a second. My lessons have improved his skills astronomically. He's developing into quite the skilled hunter, even if he is still a pestering fool. We're actually going to go train in just a bit." She replied.

"Really now? So what happened with the whole exploding door thing?" Yang stated blatantly, looking to stir a response.

Weiss thought back to her recent intrusion of Jaune's privacy. In hindsight, she probably should've knocked, but how was she to know that he would be like that? She started to blush at the remembrance of it all, but she still held firm that it was probably mostly his fault, as were most things.

Yang took notice of her subtle blush after her question. With that, Yang had all the ammunition she needed to fuel things.

"So did you like what you saw?" She asked with a wink.

"Did I like what I– No!" Exclaimed Weiss in surprise at Yang's question.

"No? All pressed up against him. Alone." Yang continued. She was enjoying every moment of this. "Although, nearly blowing him up will probably put a damper on your little romance."

"Romance?! No, of course not. There is nothing between us!" Weiss shouted. She was definitely beginning to lose control of this argument.

"Aww… somebody's got a crush and won't admit it." Yang teased.

"Shut it, Xiao Long." Weiss retorted.

"Relax, I'm just messin' with you!" Yang laughed.

"It's not funny." With that, Weiss stormed off to train.

* * *

As Weiss and Jaune dueled in the training room, young Ruby sat eagerly watching from a nearby bench. She had to admit, this was far more entertaining than she thought it would be… and she was going to get free cookies out of it. Surprisingly, the two didn't seem to be at each other's throats as much as before. This only made Ruby's job easier. As she watched, she saw Jaune get knocked back by a blast from Myrtenaster. Weiss charged toward the downed hunter, intent on finishing the match.

"Sweep her leg, Jaune!" Ruby startled herself as she reactively yelled to her friend.

With that, Jaune swiftly dropped the young heiress and stood up. He held his sword at the now vulnerable Weiss, thus winning the match.

"Yay! Jaune, you won!" Exclaimed Ruby as she ran up to her friend and hugged him. "I knew you could do it! And you didn't get frozen this time!"

"Yeah, I guess I did win. Thanks for the tip Ruby!" Jaune replied with a smile.

"And just what the hell did you think you were doing?!" Suddenly, the pair's attention turned to Weiss' angered tone.

"Uh… Helping…?" Ruby shrank as Weiss approached her.

"I don't know why he dragged you along, but if you're going to watch, you will have no input. He needs to learn for himself and not with the help of the audience." Weiss stated angrily. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Weiss… " Ruby backed off to her seat again. "Geez… I was only trying to help." She mumbled quietly to herself.

"Cut it out, Weiss. She was only trying to help. You don't need to bite her head off!" Jaune interrupted. "At least she cared enough to help me win, unlike you! You just barrage me with failure until eventually I get it right.

"Cut it out? Do you want to get better, Arc? If so, then you can't have interruptions like that! In the heat of battle, there will be no second chances, and there will be no commentary." Weiss scolded Jaune loudly.

"You still have no right to treat her that way." Added Jaune in defense his friend.

"No right? I have no right?" Weiss stepped closer to Jaune, this time with an accusing finger pointed mere centimeters from him.

Ruby had perked up when she had heard Jaune try to defend her, but upon seeing what was happening now, she quickly remembered why she was here in the first place. She just hoped that Weiss didn't kill Jaune this time. She was about to intervene when something caught her eye.

"You just watch your mouth Arc. Training is over for today." Shouted Weiss in her rage. How dare he defy her, he was her pupil.

However, before the young hunter could argue back, he noticed something big and yellow out of the corner of his eye.

"Alright you two, you've done enough arguing for today! Now kiss and make up now, you two." With that, Yang forced the two together with a mischievous laugh. Nobody messed with her little sister and got away with it. Jaune would just have to be collateral damage.

Neither Weiss, nor Jaune were able to process what the brawler had said before they were both pressed together into an awkward collision. As the two made contact with each other, their lips pressed together, albeit forcefully and briefly. Although not truly a kiss, as it was more of a traffic accident, the pair was still equally as mortified by it all.

"Bahahaha! That'll teach you." Laughed Yang.

"Yang!" Suddenly, her attention was turned to her younger sister who quickly stormed out of the room in a fit.

"…oops" Said Yang in sudden realization.

As Jaune collected himself, he saw Ruby run from the room upset. Then he turned to see a concerned looking Yang.

"Just what in the hell is going on here!?" He shouted in frustration and confusion.

_Where did Yang come from?! Where's Ruby going?! She's supposed to protect me! …Did I just kiss Weiss?! Why isn't Yang laughing anymore? …Wait… Weiss… Oh… crap_

Unfortunately for him, he never turned his attention to the young heiress who had gathered her wits as well. Jaune was met with a loud crack followed by a blinding light before losing consciousness. The young hunter's onslaught of confusion and concern toward whatever had just happened came to an abrupt and painful end as he blacked out.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: RWBY is the creation of Monty Oum, in collaboration with Rooster Teeth.**

* * *

"Okay, in hindsight maybe I did overreact a bit…" Stated Weiss. A concerned look cast across her face.

"A bit? You knocked the poor guy out!" Replied Yang as they hurriedly carried an unconscious Jaune to the nurse's office.

"Just think how damaging this is going to be for your relationship. I mean, you two just shared your first kiss and then you dropped him." Yang added with a laugh. Although her little scheme backfired in several areas, she still had enough ammo to poke fun at Weiss with.

"We are not in a relationship… and how was I supposed to know that was going to happen?! I just reacted." Weiss argued as they reached the office.

The pair lay the unconscious hunter down on a nearby bed in the nurse's office. As they did, one of the nurses approached the two. She briefly looked at the incapacitated boy and then turned her attention back to Yang and Weiss.

"Again, really?" She started with a distraught look. "What happened this time?" Her question directed at Yang.

"Well, WeissandJaunekissedandthenWeissgot––"

"Training accident!" Weiss interrupted.

"Of course it was. It's always training accidents with this poor kid." The nurse replied.

As the nurse tended to Jaune, Yang and Weiss made their way into the hallway to discuss the matter at hand.

"A training accident. Really?" Yang began. She gave Weiss a look of disapproval.

"Don't you give me that look, Xiao Long. You're the one who caused all this in the first place!" Answered an increasingly irritated Weiss.

"Hey, if you hadn't been treating my sister like that, everything would be all fine and dandy!" Argued Yang.

"Well next time teach her to not interrupt someone mid-lesson!" Retorted Weiss. "Speaking of whom, she sure seemed in a hurry to leave. You see that Yang, your little joke even disgusted Ruby!"

Hearing mention of her sister, Yang suddenly remembered that she had run out of the training room in a rather distraught manner. She quickly turned to head off in the direction of their room. She wasn't entirely sure about what had happened, but she had a pretty good idea. The two did not speak to one another on the way, although Weiss was still confused as to what the hurry was. Upon reaching their room, Yang quickly unlocked and opened the door to find her younger sister sitting on her bed.

"Go away Yang." Stated Ruby blatantly before laying on her side to face away from them.

"Ruby, tell me what's the matter. Maybe I can help?" Started Yang.

"If you're still disgusted by what happened back there, don't worry. I knocked him out… although I've been informed that may have been a bit over the edge as it wasn't even his fault." Said Weiss, still oblivious to Ruby's emotional distraught.

"You did what?!" Exclaimed Ruby as she quickly sat up from her bed.

"Yeah, Weiss here kind of overreacted and took out Jaune." Yang added.

"No!" Ruby fell back and buried her face into her pillow. "I was supposed to make sure you didn't nearly kill him!" She added, muffled slightly.

"Just what is that supposed to mean?!" Weiss interjected.

Suddenly, Ruby jumped down from her bed and quickly approached Weiss.

"I mean that you've done nothing but openly insult him for no reason and hurt him over things that aren't even his fault!" Ruby began in anger.

"Why can't you just accept him for who he is?! He needed your help and tolerated all your abuse, but you still can't get over it!"

"Well if he wouldn't be so insufferably idiotic all the time, then we wouldn't be here, would we?!" Weiss snapped.

"No, if you'd only been nicer to him and if Yang hadn't done that, then we wouldn't be here!" Ruby shouted before returning to her bed.

Before Weiss could make a remark, Yang gestured for her to be quiet. Yang approached Ruby, stepping up on the lower bed to be eye level with her sister.

"Ruby, I'm sorry I did that. I was just trying to defend my little sister and I didn't know you'd react that way… or that Weiss would deck Jaune," Yang briefly turned to glare at Weiss before speaking again, "But why exactly did you run off like that?"

"You made him kiss _her!_" Ruby replied, refusing to turn to face her sister nor Weiss now.

"Excuse me? And just what is so wrong with me?!" Weiss began in growing anger.

"Besides the fact that you don't deserve him!" Ruby replied, this time turning over to face Weiss.

"Uh… guys… What's going on––" Yang tried to question before being cut off.

"I don't deserve him?!" Weiss interrupted as she approached Ruby. "You don't tell me who I do and do not deserve. Got it?"

"You don't even like him! Why are you even arguing this?!" Ruby shouted.

"Oh and what, you do?" Weiss replied with a sarcastic chuckle.

"I… I dunno." Ruby replied in a hushed tone.

Suddenly realizing just what was going on, Yang slowly started to back her way out of the room. She could poke fun at her sister and Weiss for this later, but for now the catfight was just too dangerous. Meanwhile, Weiss was rather taken aback by Ruby's answer. She suddenly felt a feeling of surprise and something else well up inside of her.

"H–How can you even think of him like that?" Weiss questioned in surprise. She knew that her and Jaune were close friends, but never thought anything would become of that.

"Because, Weiss!" Ruby began. "I mean, Jaune's always been an amazing friend. And sure, he can be a bit of a dork… a lot. But that's what makes him fun. And even though he may get picked on and beat up, he still won't hesitate to come to the rescue of another." Ruby paused to think about her next answer.

"And even though people like you keep putting him down and telling him he's a failure, he still never quits and fights through it all. You may not see it Weiss, but he's a far better person and will definitely be a far better Hunter than you could ever be!"

Weiss took a moment to process what Ruby had said. She thought about what she had said about Jaune; about how he never gave up and how he never let the bullying put him down. She hated to admit it, but Ruby was right. But Ruby was still wrong about one thing. She was wrong about how she treated Jaune. Sure, she yelled at him and worked him hard in training, but it was only because she wanted to see him get better. All her life, she had been taught to be perfect and poise every waking moment, but Jaune wasn't like her. Jaune made mistakes, but he learned from them. He took everything in stride and sought to not only better himself, but to be the best he could so that his team could succeed. …And she had pretty much obliterated him several times over with her insults and physical abuse.

"You're right…" Weiss finally replied.

"I am? I mean, of course I am!" Ruby answered, somewhat surprised that Weiss had agreed with her.

All the while, Weiss continued to think about how she had treated Jaune. Was she really that blind to it all, that even Ruby could see it more than herself? Maybe there was more to Jaune than she cared to admit openly. As she pondered this further, she began to realize that the majority of the times he crossed her were simply accidents, and she had snapped at him every time. Yet he still came back each time and he never once tried to fight back. Only when Weiss had lashed out at Ruby did Jaune act. Even after he wakes up, he'd probably still consider her his friend and mentor, and she began to feel a sense of admiration for the young hunter.

"Jaune has come far… A lot farther than I had ever thought." Weiss began, uncertain of what she really wanted to convey. "Most people wouldn't even tolerate my personality, and yet he still does." She quietly made her last remark more for herself, than in reply to Ruby.

Before Ruby could speak, the two turned their attention toward the opening of the bathroom door.

"Wow, you two really have one hell of a conflict on your plates." Blake stated as she walked into the room.

"Uhh… Hi Blake. How much of that did you hear?" Asked Ruby. She had no idea that anybody was listening in on her and Weiss' debate.

"Enough to know that you've got a crush on a Jaune," Blake began, gesturing toward Ruby, "And that there's a lot more behind your feelings toward him as well." This time directed at Weiss.

Ruby's attention quickly turned to the young heiress, eager to hear her rebuttal.

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Weiss answered at last.

"Really now? You're telling me that Miss Weiss Schnee, Miss Perfection in the flesh, just coincidentally tolerates one and only one person's failures and foolishness for no apparent reason whatsoever? You can't even tolerate half the things your own team leader says or does. Looks to me like you're the one who should be questioning their behavior, not Ruby or Jaune." Blake gave her input on the matter before snatching one of her books from her desk and leaving the two alone in the room.

"Weiss… What did she mean about there being more to your feelings?" Ruby asked inquisitively. She may not have been the brightest of the team, but she had a pretty good idea of where Blake was going with her analysis.

"Nothing…" Weiss stated simply. "There's nothing more to it." But in reality, Weiss was still thinking feverishly to determine just what it was that made her behave so strangely.

"Weiss… Do you like Jaune too?" Ruby asked quietly, bracing herself for the imminent barrage of words that was sure to come. But instead, it never came.

"I can't feel that way about him, he's my student." Weiss answered, still uncertain. The more she thought about it, the more she learned. From what she could understand, Jaune was the only person who had tolerated her behavior as well. And strangely enough she still hadn't turned her back on him. Although, toleration, as well as knocking someone unconscious, probably didn't help anything, it still left her wondering.

"Whatever you say, Weiss. Just please go easier on him. Not everyone is out to live up to your standards, and not just anyone will put up with it." Ruby replied finally before starting to make her way toward the door.

"I'll try to be more… tolerant… of him. Wait, where are you off to?" Weiss asked. Her thoughts were still dominated by debate and confusion, as well as a bit of regret for being so quick to put down Jaune.

"To go check on Jaune. He's bound to be up by now. I just hope you didn't give him brain damage." Ruby replied as she left.

Weiss chose to stay back and think further on the matter at hand. Besides, she was probably the last person Jaune wanted to see at the moment. Weiss wanted desperately to go and apologize for hurting him, but she couldn't will herself to do so. If he were anything like Ruby had made him out to be though, he would accept her apology when it came. It felt foreign to her to view Jaune as anything more than a nuisance, but she couldn't argue it any longer. The others' logic was sound. Then Weiss thought about what was unfolding in the nurse's office.

_Ruby's probably comforting Jaune and apologizing for failing him. And Yang's bound to make a remark about me kissing Jaune before Ruby, so Ruby's probably already fidgeting over that, while Jaune obliviously questions it. _

Weiss found herself laughing internally at the last thought of Ruby being embarrassed and Jaune still being clueless.

_Ruby may have her thoughts straight and thinks she knows what she wants, but Jaune is still __**my**_ _student. _

_Wait, what did I mean by that?_

Even she wasn't entirely sure. But she did know that she needed to get her thoughts straightened out before she next saw Jaune. At the very least, she intended on changing her attitude toward him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey everybody, I was busy last week and so was my editor and fellow fanfic writer, CushionySiren3. Since we post our chapters at the same time, we decided to hold off until today. Again, I do not own RWBY. RWBY is the creation of Monty Oum through the publication of Rooster Teeth.**

"Gaaah!" Jaune woke with a start as he braced himself for Weiss' attack. He quickly relented when the throbbing pain in his head hit him. He took a moment to remember what had happened. His thoughts were cut off when someone in the room spoke.

"Hey Jaune, how ya feelin'?" Jaune scanned the room to see Yang sitting off to the side of the room. Her question came with a smile that was both glad to see he was all right, but almost apologetic. Then he remembered.

"What the hell was that for, Yang?!" He shouted as his thoughts came back to him. He tried to sit up, but was quickly put back down by the throbbing pain in his head.

"Easy there, lady killer." She replied with a gesture for him to lie down. "Well, you saw how brutal Weiss was being, right?"

"She knocked me out!" He replied in exclamation.

"Yeah…" Yang began. "Technically, I had nothing to do with that if you kind of think about it."

"You had everything to do with that!" Jaune answered, this time with more frustration than anger toward his fellow blonde.

"Okay… So maybe I deserve a little bit more of the blame." Yang replied, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

Jaune let out a sigh in frustration. He knew that Yang was very protective of Ruby, but her methods tended to be highly unorthodox. It just so happened to be the person who crossed her sister was the young heiress herself. Weiss wasn't exactly the nicest kid on the block so Yang probably had even more reason to do it than Jaune could imagine. But why did it have to be him? Why did he have to be the collateral in it all?

_Just great Jaune… Yet another fine mess you're in. _He thought to himself.

_And what happened to Ruby? You'd think she'd be dying of laughter from all of that… well maybe not all of it. But why did she just run off like that?_

Before his thoughts could go any further, Ruby walked into the room. She didn't nearly look as frantic as she did before everything went dark and… punchy.

"Hey, Jaune…" The young scythe wielder began. "How ya' feelin'?"

"I've definitely been better…" He answered.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to save you like I promised… but uhh…" Ruby gave him a pleading stare.

Jaune took a second to guess what she was hinting at before it hit him.

"Yes… You can still have the cookies I promised." He replied at last.

"Yay!" Ruby jumped with joy before leaning forward and hugging Jaune tightly.

"But…" Jaune started.

"But… what?" Ruby stared at him in question.

"Just what happened back there in the training room?" He questioned.

"Uhh… what do you mean?" Ruby replied, trying to put on her best poker face.

"I mean, the whole running off thing. Care to explain?" Jaune asked.

"Yeah, care to explain Ruby?" Yang looked toward her sister with a mischievous grin, which in turn, received a deathly glare from Ruby.

"Oh no reason… I'm sure you wouldn't want to know anyways." Ruby lied.

"Oh, I'm sure he wants to know lil' sis. After all, he did get his bell rung because of it." Yang interrupted.

"Hey, that was your fault and you know it! Don't go blaming me!" Ruby answered in frustration and anger.

"Uhh… girls…" Jaune tried to cut in.

"Hey, it's not my fault you got all jealous and ran off because you–" Before Yang could finish, Ruby quickly covered her mouth with her hand and ushered her out of the room.

"Uh oh, looks like you've overstayed your welcome. Bye Yang!" Ruby exclaimed in a mild panic before slamming the door behind her sister.

"Umm… Ruby, what was that about?" Jaune questioned. He was beyond confusion at this point.

"What was what about? Are you sure you're feeling okay? Maybe you have a temperature." Ruby frantically tried to get off topic.

"Ruby, why'd she say you were jealous?" Jaune asked. Normally, he'd never dare to question the young reaper, but he was still struggling to understand what happened and needed answers.

Ruby realized there was no way out of this. She had to come clean. Even if Jaune was a bit clueless and probably still couldn't guess what she had meant, she knew he wouldn't give up his questioning. But for one of the few times in her life, she was afraid. She was afraid that if she did tell him, she'd lose one of her best friends.

_Come on, Ruby. You can do this. Just tell him. _She mentally tried to build up courage.

_Okay, game plan, Ruby…_ _Why do you like him so much? Because he's so kind and caring. He's an amazing friend. He never gives up (Yeah, just like with his questions) Shut up. Where was I? Oh yeah, he's always there for those in need. And even though he can be a bit of a dork, I love spending time with him. That sounds about right, right?_

Ruby was quickly snapped out of her thoughts by a hand waving in front of her face.

"Uh, hello? Remnant to Ruby, do you copy?" Said Jaune, trying to get her attention.

"Oh, uhh… Yes? Sorry, I kinda spaced out." Ruby replied finally. She mentally cursed herself for drifting off like that in front of him.

"So, do I get an answer?" Jaune gave her questioning look.

Ruby had to do it.

"Well, Jaune… You see… It's because I–" But before Ruby could answer, the door to the room swung open.

"Hey Jaune, how are you feeling?" Weiss asked with a sincere tone of concern.

"Oh, uh, hey Weiss. I'm feeling better." Jaune replied.

"That's good to hear…" Weiss responded before turning to address Ruby.

"Umm Ruby, could you please give us a moment? This is kind of important."

"Well, actually Weiss, Ruby was just about to explain–" Jaune tried to intervene, but was cut off by Ruby.

"No, it's fine. I'm sure what Weiss has to say is much more important." Ruby replied with a sarcastic scowl.

Ruby glared back at Weiss before closing the door behind her.

"Jerk." Ruby mumbled to herself as she left.

"Jaune, I'd just like to start off by apologizing for what I did back there…" Weiss began. Her tone hinted at no sarcasm, leading Jaune to believe she was honestly sorry.

"Oh, what, the whole unconscious thing? That's nothing…" Jaune replied, trying his best to sound receptive.

"It wasn't 'nothing'. I could've seriously hurt you, and you didn't even do anything to deserve it." Weiss answered.

Jaune gave the young heiress a questioning look. This wasn't like her to be so sincerely apologetic… especially to him.

"Weiss, are you feeling alright?" He asked with the same questioning look.

"It isn't really like you to be concerned about me."

His last words stung a bit. But he was right, she had never really been concerned about his well being before. But she would change that.

"I know… but I really do feel bad about what I did. You didn't have anything to do with it." Weiss replied.

"Yeah… it was kind of Yang's fault." Jaune responded, trying not to put all the blame on Weiss.

"But hey, I wouldn't want to be caught kissing me either!" Jaune added with a laugh. He was doing his best to lighten the mood between them.

Weiss briefly pondered what he had said.

_Great Weiss, you beat the crap out of your first kiss and he's still trying to be all modest._

_Hey, that wasn't even really technically a kiss._

_Sure felt like a kiss though._

_How would you even know?_

_Shut up._

She did her best to silence her thoughts before replying.

"It's not that…" She began. "I guess I was just caught off guard."

"Well, remind me to never sneak up on you." Jaune replied with a half grin.

"I hope this doesn't make you want to stop training with me" He added.

Weiss was a bit surprised by this last remark.

"Not at all, I thought you'd be the one to want to stop training with me." Weiss replied.

"After all, I do always yell at you… you know, on top of the whole unconscious thing. And then the door to your room." She winced as she thought about all that she'd done to him. The list seemed to go on and on.

"Na, I still need your training after all, remember?" Jaune replied.

"Besides, I know you wouldn't really kill me, right?"

Weiss laughed a little at this last part.

"Right?" Jaune asked.

"You're a great guy, Jaune Arc. And you're going to make a fine hunter one day. Even though you can be a pain, annoying at times, and all around a total lunkhead you–"

"Okay, I get it!" Jaune interrupted.

"Yeah… So anyways… I'll give you tomorrow off after all this and see you at training the next day." With that, Weiss turned to head for the door.

"Alright, see you then snow angel." Jaune added as Weiss started to leave.

"Hey, Jaune." She turned toward him.

"Uh, yeah?" Jaune was sure she was going to be pissed about his last remark.

"If you tell anybody, and I mean anybody, that we kissed… I'll kill you." And with her last remark, she closed the door behind her and made her way back to her room.

_Smooth, Weiss. Real smooth. _She thought to herself as she walked down the hall.

* * *

_Well, that could've gone a lot better than it did. _Ruby thought to herself as she lay on her bed. She was upset because Weiss had cut her off before she could tell Jaune how she really felt about him.

_Stupid Weiss. She can't even decide what she really thinks of him, what gives her the right to just barge in like that? Besides, she's nearly killed him a lot of times already. I never did that. Okay, well there was that one time I showed him the new ammunition I made for Crescent Rose, but that was an accident. _She giggled to herself at this last thought before returning to the matter at hand.

Ruby knew she shouldn't entirely be upset with Weiss over the whole training room incident. It wasn't her fault, or Jaune's. And technically speaking, since neither of them went for it, it wasn't really a kiss. But for some reason it still bothered her. Yang was just looking out for her and doing what she felt was necessary…

_But why did it have to involve Jaune?! …Anybody else. But no, she had to use Jaune as collateral damage. Dang it Yang! _She mentally exclaimed.

She had to think of a way to tell Jaune how she felt. She couldn't just walk up to him and say it. That might scare him off. No, she had to come up with a plan.

_But planning is hard work…_

_It's better than losing Jaune to Weiss._

_Gah… fine._

With that last thought, Ruby climbed down from her bed and took a seat at the desk to begin drawing up her master plan. She was going to tell Jaune how she felt about him and she wasn't going to let Yang, Weiss, or anybody get in the way. Unfortunately, she still had no idea where to begin.

Before she could go on, her attention turned to a decorated flyer that lay at the corner of the desk. It was a notice from the faculty, reminding students about the annual Winter Ball. Apparently, it was mandatory for all students to attend. She'd have to wait until later to be angry at Yang for not telling her sooner, for now she had just the right idea. Yes, her plan to reveal her true feelings for Jaune was all coming together. Too bad she didn't know how to dance.

**Well, there it is. Next chapter is destined to be full of conflict and possible conflict resolution. **

**Well, see you again next week everybody.**

**-NinjaSlayer4x**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey everybody, sorry about the wait. I've been very busy, as has my editor. So without further ado, I give you _Crossing Swords: Chapter 8_...**

The sunlight slowly crept across the room as the sun rose higher above Beacon. Jaune awoke to the uncomfortable warmth of its rays upon his face. He wasn't used to getting up this late in the morning, but he definitely enjoyed the extra sleep. For once he actually had a free day off. No training. No class. Nothing but free time. And all he had to do was get punched into unconsciousness and threatened with death. Who would've thought it could be so easy? As he sat up in his bed and scanned his surroundings he realized the rest of his team were no longer present.

_Nora's probably already dragged Ren down to the cafeteria for breakfast and Pyrrha should be finishing up her morning training by now. _He thought to himself.

Looking at the time he realized that if he didn't hurry, he was going to miss his chance at breakfast. He quickly got dressed and made his way down the hall toward the cafeteria.

_It feels weird being up so late. I sure hope Nora hasn't eaten all the pancakes by now._

He was surprised when he saw that his team was nowhere to be found amongst the now dispersed crowd of students in the cafeteria. The only familiar faces he recognized were Ruby, Blake, and Yang sitting at the end of a nearby table… and that weird kid from Professor Oobleck's class that wore his tie on backwards. He quickly served himself some breakfast and made his way to the table his friends had procured.

"Morning, guys." He said as he sat down. He noticed that they were all finished with their meals and were just chatting now.

"Good morning, Jaune," Ruby was the first to reply. "Why're you up so late?"

"Yeah, what's up with that? Did Weiss break up with you over the whole "training" incident?" Yang interrupted with a smirk. This caught a brief glare from her younger sister.

"Very funny, Yang. Actually, she gave me the day off from training. I kind of slept in." He answered sheepishly.

"Lucky you. Ruby here has been waking me up early every single morning all semester." Yang gestured to her sister.

"I swear, I'll catch you in the act and make you regret disturbing my sleep."

"Still haven't caught me yet!" Ruby replied with a mischievous smile.

As Yang and Ruby continued their sisterly dispute, Jaune turned his attention to finishing his breakfast. Meanwhile, Blake sat reading her book. He'd always wondered what it was she was reading, but he always assumed it would be bad idea to find out. As he continued with his meal, he noticed Weiss enter the cafeteria out of the corner of his eye. Rather than serve herself something to eat, she instead made her way over to the table.

"Good morning, Weiss." He started. "Slept in too?"

"No, unlike you, I actually like to start the day off early." Weiss answered.

"I was in here hours ago and I've been in the library since."

"The library, but it's the weekend? Didn't anybody ever teach you to have fun?" Jaune replied jokingly.

"Ever hear of doing your homework? Besides, I do have fun." Weiss answered.

"Hey, I do my homework! …When I can. And no offense, but you're definition of fun is a little different from ours." Jaune said as he set his empty plate aside.

"Yeah, Weiss. You're not exactly the poster child of fun." Yang added. Her attention now turned to their conversation.

"I, too, can have fun!" Weiss retorted in exclamation.

"Yeah, about as much fun as my–"

"Ladies, why don't we just agree to disagree?" Jaune interrupted, not wanting the brawler and heiress to pick a fight in the middle of the cafeteria.

"Very well then." Weiss calmed herself as she gave Yang a stern glare before returning to the silence.

"Sooo…" Jaune began, not wanting to say something to upset either of them.

Seeing this as her newfound opportunity, Ruby decided to take advantage of the lull in conversation. She'd been thinking about how to go about asking Jaune to the dance for hours, finally settling on just taking the direct approach and asking him outright. Besides, even if he did get all awkward about it and didn't know how to reply, she'd just guilt trip him with puppy dog eyes. That always worked with him. Weiss and Yang were still occasionally giving each other dark glares so hopefully they'd be too preoccupied with that to pay much attention to what she had in mind.

"So Jaune…" She started as she pulled Jaune off to the side.

"Yeah Ruby, what's up?" Jaune replied as he turned his attention to her.

"So did you hear about the Winter Ball coming up? I guess they're making us all go." She answered.

"Yeah, should be interesting. I don't really know how to dance, so I won't be much good to whoever accompanies me." He replied with a laugh.

"Well, neither do I. Looks like the dance will be a new experience for both of us." Ruby replied as she leaned in closer to the young knight.

"Hehe, yeah it will." Jaune answered.

"So… Since we all have to be there… and we both don't know how to dance… Maybe we could–"

"What's that about a dance?" Yang interrupted from out of the blue.

"Oh my god, that's right. The Winter Ball is coming up soon. We have to get you a dress, Ruby. My baby sister is gonna be the most adorable little huntress there!"

"Gah! Yang, no!" Ruby exclaimed as her sister took her by the arm and pulled her aside.

Jaune laughed to himself as he watched Yang make a fuss over Ruby and their preparation for the dance. Meanwhile, Ruby tried desperately to escape her older sister. It wasn't that she wasn't thrilled by the idea of going shopping with her sister and getting prepared for her first dance. She just had the matter of asking Jaune that took precedence.

As Ruby busied herself with trying to ditch her sister, Jaune turned his attention to the young heiress.

"So Weiss, who are you gonna go with to the Winter Ball?" Jaune started, trying to make conversation.

"What?" Weiss turned her attention to him. "I don't know… I never really put much thought into it."

"Really? I thought you'd be on top of these sort of things given your uh… prestigious background." He replied.

"Don't get me wrong, I usually am accustomed to such events. It's just that I hardly have any time to be concerned with such matters." She answered.

"You mean to say that Weiss Schnee has no time to even consider an itty-bitty dance? The same Schnee heiress who can handle five daily classes, two bi-weekly tutoring sessions, daily study sessions after class, weekend training and train Jaune "The Lunkhead" Arc in her free time?" Jaune laughed as he replied.

"Well, when you say it like that it makes me sound like I don't have any time for anything fun at all…" Weiss replied.

"Oh and apparently morning library studies!" Jaune added.

"So I like to get things done in a timely manner. What of it?" She retorted.

"Well, I'm not saying Yang was right… but…" Jaune began.

"If you even say it, I'll break you again." Weiss jabbed her finger toward the young hunter.

"Okay, okay! …You could use a little more fun in your schedule though." Jaune chuckled jokingly.

"Shut it lunkhead." Weiss replied. "So who have you considered going with?"

"That's a good question. I never really thought about who to go with. Nobody I guess." Jaune replied honestly.

"You can't expect me to believe that the self-pronounced 'ladies man' Jaune Arc intends to attend one of the most prestigious events of the year all by himself?" Weiss replied sarcastically.

"Hey, I'll work on it!" Jaune answered.

"Well, let me know if you ever figure out your dilemma." She replied.

"Well, why don't we just go together?" Jaune proposed, not really paying much attention to it.

"You and I?" Weiss laughed sarcastically at this.

"Hey, I don't see you putting a better idea out there." Jaune replied.

"Besides, it can't hurt to go as friends, right?"

Weiss took a moment to consider it. She didn't really have any better alternatives, but to go with _him_, one of the most annoying and intolerable beings to ever be accepted to Beacon Academy. Albeit, she had realized he could be slightly less intolerable at times… and she did kind of owe him after all the 'training accidents'. Also, he was one of the few guys here she had even somewhat gotten close to, in a sense… and most brutish guys like Cardin Winchester did make him look a lot more appealing by certain standards. Besides, she did promise herself to be nicer to him. Just as he said, it couldn't hurt to go as friends. She'd just have to accept it.

"Very well then." She answered.

"Well, that was easy." Jaune stated in success.

"But." She started.

"But?" He gave her a curious glance.

"On the condition that we are not 'together', nor does this imply any sort of romantic occurrences." She stated.

"Of course." Jaune answered.

"And there will be no inappropriate or affectionate contact. No closer than six inches apart. No telling anybody we're together. No jokes. No pranks. And absolutely no lunkheadedness. We are simply there to dance with each other and nothing more." She said matter-of-factly.

"Okay… Sounds good, I guess." Jaune replied, trying to fully grasp the terms and conditions that apparently came with Weiss.

"Good. That takes care of that then. First we'll need to get you a suit and tie to match whatever I wear." Weiss replied.

"What's wrong with what I already have?" Jaune asked.

"If you're going with me, you're going by my standards. Got it?" She answered knowingly.

"Yes Ms. Schnee…" He replied in a sarcastic tone. "But I too have one condition."

"Oh, and what would that be, Mr. Arc." Weiss replied, returning the sarcasm.

"Teach me how to dance." He grinned at her.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

"Too late, you already said you'd go with me. No take backs." Jaune replied with a laugh. He knew that if anybody could teach him how to dance elegantly, it was Weiss.

"So be it… From now until the dance, our training lessons will be replaced by dance lessons. A Schnee can't be seen attending such an event with an unskilled partner." She almost reluctantly answered.

"Hey, I'm better than nothing. Besides, it'll be fun. …And you could use a little fun." He replied, the last part mumbled.

"I thought I told you to–!" Weiss was about to lay into the young hunter before she was interrupted.

Ruby had seen Jaune and Weiss discussing something and had been trying her hardest to escape her sister's frenzy. And while the young scythe wielder could've easily taken down any foe that dared to obstruct her, she couldn't do that to her own sister, especially not when she was only trying to be nice. But she had another more important matter to take care of, and that superseded even her own sister's strong affection. She hadn't particularly been paying attention to what her sister was saying, but it had something to do with getting her 'dolled up' and finding her a 'suitor' to accompany her. These words were foreign to her and only furthered her want to escape. With the flick of her wrist she deployed Crescent Rose. Not in a manner to bring harm to her loving sister, but just enough to nudge her out of the way.

Weiss was cut off mid-sentence as a mass of yellow topped with thick, blonde hair soared past and in between them and crashing into the wall opposite. She was fairly certain the wrecking ball looked a lot like Yang, but before she could ponder that any further, Ruby stepped in.

"Hey, guys!" Ruby interrupted with a smile.

"Hey…" Jaune replied, cautiously glancing back at the crash site behind him. "Was that your sister?"

"Huh, no! Maybe." Ruby replied sheepishly. "So what were you guys talkin' about?"

"Oh, well Weiss and I are going together–"

"Ehem." Weiss interrupted, glaring at Jaune.

"Oh right…" Jaune continued, remembering the rules.

"Weiss and I are going to be attending the Winter Ball at the same time and dancing with each other… as friends."

He gave Weiss a glance as if to ask if this response was better suited, to which she nodded back at him.

Ruby was near speechless at what she had just heard. She just couldn't believe it.

"So… you two are going together?" She asked, a defeated tone in her voice.

"Well, if you want to put it that way. Technically yes. But only by a professional standard and no more than as friends." Weiss replied, oblivious to the hurt in Ruby's voice.

"And Weiss has agreed to teach me how to dance! Maybe she can help you learn too." Jaune added, placing a hand on Ruby's shoulder.

"Yeah… maybe." Ruby replied, emotion welling up inside of her. "I just remembered I have to be somewhere."

Ruby stormed off between the two, bumping into Weiss on the way through. If Weiss didn't know any better, she would've thought Ruby almost did it on purpose.

The pair watched their companion's hurried exit, curious as to why she had to leave all of a sudden.

"Ouch, what the heck was that for, Ruby?!" Her sister had come to and was sitting up near the exit. Weiss and Jaune's ears were met with a loud thud that echoed through the cafeteria and Yang was sent off in another direction.

"Well… that was… strange." Jaune stared at event as Ruby disappeared from sight.

"I wonder what her problem is?"

"It's none of our concern for now. We need to get you ready if you have any intention of accompanying me anywhere." Weiss replied as she took hold of Jaune and dragged him off. If she was going to be stuck with him as a last resort, she was going to be certain he was prepared.

* * *

_Where did I go wrong? _Ruby thought to herself as she sat alone in her room.

_I know he isn't one of the brightest guys around, but how could he go with… her?_

Ruby thought desperately for a way to fix everything. Her attempt to ask Jaune to the dance had been foiled by none other than her own sister. She knew she didn't mean any harm, but she still dealt a whole lot.

_Weiss knew how I felt about him. She's been nothing but a jerk to him since the beginning. He was my friend first. She doesn't deserve him. _

She pondered briefly the possibility of just walking up to him and kissing him. But the idea was quickly sacked as it would probably only do more damage than good to whatever friendship the oblivious hunter had toward her. No, if Ruby wanted to be with Jaune she had to take out the heiress. Well, not literally of course. But she had to get her out of the way somehow.

_I could always just get Jaune alone with me at the dance._ The start of the idea intrigued her.

_But Weiss would have to be distracted somehow. Then I could spend the dance with him and make my move. _While full of flaws at the moment, it was the only plan her hurt and worried thoughts could come up with.

She even briefly wondered if Weiss had done this to her on purpose. If so, she'd make her pay. Yes, she'd do all she could to separate the two. This was no simple cookie jar raid. No, Ruby had to go all stops on this one. She had to do whatever it took to set things right again.

Ruby saw only red. And it wasn't the usual strawberry red either. Ruby was out for blood.

_All's fair in love and war, Weiss._

**Now, before anybody starts posting reviews about how they disagree with or may not approve of the change in personalities, know this… This chapter is the major turn of events leading to the peak of the story. The next chapter will be the most interesting, but will definitely not be the end. Love it, hate it, like it, everybody has their own opinion, but please don't refrain from voicing it. Also, check out my editor and good friend CushionySiren3's RWBY fanfic, _A Frozen Heart_.**


End file.
